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Port of Call |
LAST UPDATE March 12, 2008
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| site design imagesparkle.com |
| October 8, 2007 |
Singapore – Global University Study Programme: Uncovering Japan’s Dark
History in Singapore |
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A place of solace, prayer and hope: the chapel from Changi Prison (now Changi Museum) built by POWs during Japan’s occupation of Singapore |
The first Global University (GU) on-land study programme took place in Singapore and aimed to give the students a view of Singapore beyond tourist attractions, focusing instead on the Japanese occupation of the island from 1942 to 1945. Leading up to the excursion, students had been studying onboard with professor and Director for Asia Pacific Resource Center Utsumi Aiko about the topical issue of Japan’s war compensation and the ongoing effects of Japan’s involvement in World War II and the Asia-Pacific War. For many, it was the first time to learn of Japan’s role as an aggressor in the region. During the programme, participants visited historically significant sites which made the damage done by the Japanese in Singapore all the more real. They ended the day back onboard Peace Boat with students from the National University of Singapore (NUS) to share their views and experiences of the occupation. |
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| Messages of love, peace and empathy from veterans and families of ex-POWs tacked to the chapel wall |
Under the guidance of Helena Poon from the Changi Museum, a former prison that chronicles the years of occupation, participants gained an insight into the harsh conditions under which Prisoners of War (POWs) and civilians lived during that dark era. The Japanese ruled by terror, taking more than 100,000 POWs including British, Australian and Indian soldiers. At the museum, participants also learnt of “Sook-ching,” the cleansing of ethnic Chinese. Those Chinese men who wore glasses, for example, were executed as they appeared as academic types who potentially posed a threat to the regime. Japanese textbooks state that between 5,000 and 25,000 civilians were killed, although in Singapore the number is believed to be between 30,000 and 50,000. |
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Participants learn about and visit the graves of the tyrannical Japanese figures who led the invasion and occupation of Singapore during World War II at the Japanese Cemetery Park |
Despite these hardships,the people of Singapore have forgiven Japan for the atrocities committed there. According to Mrs Poon, ‘The Chinese are pragmatic. We hold no bitterness to the Japanese today. Singapore has moved on. Today, Singapore is a sovereign nation. That era was part of its colonial history. Plus, the Japanese have made amends with economic contributions.’ Another highlight was a visit to the sky-high Civilian War Memorial in the city center. The sun slid behind the skyscrapers as a solemn ceremony took place, participants silently paying their respects by placing white carnations, the flower of grieving in Japan, at the foot of the monument. |
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| Participants pay their respects at the Civilian War Memorial. The four columns reaching to the sky represent the four ethnicities of Singapore (Chinese, Indian, Malay, Euro-Asian). Joined in two places, it symbolizes the shared suffering of Singaporeans. |
As the day drew to a close, Mrs Poon expressed gratitude to the participants as it is unusual for Japanese to partake in such a venture. She also said ‘We [Singaporeans] decided we must move ahead. We refuse to let this black episode in our history pull us down. We must also learn the lessons of war. Japan gained her riches in peace. She didn’t gain them in war.’ Participant Uchiyama Machiko, who grew up in Japan during the war, was moved by her experience in Singapore. ‘The Japanese did a lot of damage here, so as a Japanese person, it was really hard to witness. Many people don’t know about what happened here, so it was a very good experience in the end.’ |
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Khadijah Yesin and Maria Joseph from NUS pose with turnips passed around by Dr Kratoska to show what civilians ate during Japan’s occupation of Singapore |
Back onboard Peace Boat, the participants and students from NUS listened to a lecture by historian and writer Dr Paul Kratoska from that university who emphasized how appalling wartime conditions were and how in addition to an atmosphere of terror, civilians had to cope with widespread unemployment, a shortage of food and medicine as well as moral deterioration. Together, the Peace Boat participants and NUS students shared their experiences of the war. Some of the older participants remembered the Americans dropping bombs in Japan while the younger Singaporeans shared stories passed on from parents and grandparents of grieving wives whose husbands didn’t return, and of entire families massacred. |
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| Participants and students from the NUS discuss their experiences relating to the Japanese occupation of Singapore |
In turn, the Japanese participants asked the Singaporeans what they thought of the Asia-Pacific War. One of the students said ‘It happened, it was a tragedy but life goes on. I don’t hold others accountable for the actions of their ancestors.’ However, another student disagreed as her father, whose family had been killed by the Japanese, reminds her of it everyday. Another commented ‘But the Japanese civilians also suffered. They were also victims.’ The perplexing question of what can be done to prevent war was addressed. One student responded by saying ‘We shouldn’t be ignorant about world affairs. We should be constantly sensitive of our surroundings. We need to combat apathy.’ Dr Kratoska jumped in and had the last word: ‘I think it’s very difficult to kill people that are your friends. It’s easier to conquer when you demonize others. Japan believed that Southeast Asians were inferior. But, if we think of each other as human beings, then it is very hard [to participate in war].’ |
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